Tag Archives: Arab Spring

by: the Common Constitutionalist

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Establishment Republicans have always been proponents of the fallacy of nation building overseas. This was their vision for Iraq and Afghanistan. This is also why they praised the bogus Arab Spring. They had this warped view that if America just removed the one obstacle to self-governance from the people of these nations, that being a Dictator or Theocrat, the rest would fall in line and take care of itself.

We see how well that worked. Many of us also foretold the disaster.

Well, the Arab Spring sounds quite like the Republican Spring. For years we heard the same old tired song from the GOP. Just remove this one obstacle – give us the House of Representatives so that we may govern on behalf of you, the People It all starts in Congress – Republicans would then control the purse-strings. The rest will fall in line and take care of itself. We did that.

Then they said that we in Congress are trying, but are being blocked by that low-down Harry Reid and the Democrats. Just remove this one obstacle – give us the Senate so that we may govern on behalf of you, the People. They would then control all legislation. The rest will fall in line and take care of itself. We did that.

Then they said that we in Congress are trying. We send bills to the Senate. They pass, but are being vetoed by that low-down President Obama. Just remove this one obstacle – give us the Presidency so that we may govern on behalf of you, the People. There would be no stopping us then. The rest will fall in line and take care of itself. We did that. read more

The Great Sphinx and the pyramids of Giza are now the target of a radical Salafist jihadist leader.

Murgan Salem al-Gohary, 50, an Islamist leader twice-sentenced under former President Hosni Mubarak for advocating violence, told Egyptian media that the historical landmarks are ‘idolatrous’ and must be destroyed.

The threats are being taken seriously as ten years ago Gohary helped smash a pair of giant Buddha statues in Afghanistan.

Egyptian newspaper al-Masry al-Youm said Gohary is a jihadist leader with links to the Taliban, reported the Jerusalem Post.

‘The idols and statutes that fill Egypt must be destroyed. Muslims are tasked with applying the teachings of Islam and removing these idols, just like we did in Afghanistan when we smashed the Buddha statues,’ Gohary said in a Saturday night television interview, according to al-Masry al-Youm.

His comments came a day after thousands of Islamists gathered in Tahrir Square to call for the strict application of Sharia law in the new constitution.

He is issuing the same call as supreme Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar did in 2001 when he issued an edict against un-Islamic graven images, which means all idolatrous images of humans and animals.

The Great Sphinx and the pyramids of Giza are now the target of a radical Salafist jihadist leader

As a result, the Taliban destroyed all ancient sculptures, using explosives, tanks, and anti-aircraft weapons blew apart a pair of giant Buddhas in Bamiyan Province, 230 kilometers (150 miles) from the capital of Kabul.

‘He was sentenced twice, one of the two sentences being life imprisonment. He subsequently fled Egypt to Afghanistan, where he was badly injured in the American invasion.

‘In 2007, he traveled from Pakistan to Syria, which then handed him over to Egypt. After Mubarak’s fall in early 2011, he was released from prison by a judicial ruling,’ the newspaper added.

Destruction: His threats are being taken seriously as ten years ago Gohary helped smash a pair of giant Buddha statues in Afghanistan

Missing: A general view of the alcoves where giant Buddha statues once stood in Bamiyan in 2001

The tourism board Ihab el-Badry told Egyptian daily al-Ahram that the group planned to sue President Mohamed Morsi for ‘lack of response’ to Gohary’s threats

The Great Sphinx outside Cairo, which has the head of a pharaoh and the body of a lion, was built soon after the first pyramid – around 4,500 years ago.

Close to the Sphinx are the three pyramids of Giza, the largest of which is known as the Great Pyramid and is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

The pyramids are a source of national income and they bring tourists to Egypt so the Egyptian Interior Ministry source said officials are taking the threats seriously.

According to al-Masry al-Youm, authorities have taken the ‘taken the necessary precautions to prevent violations of the law or any abuses of anything in the public domain or archaeological treasures including the pyramids.’

Egypt’s Coalition to Support Tourism are now worried that his threats will deter tourists from visiting the landmarks.

CST leader Ihab el-Badry told Egyptian daily al-Ahram that the group planned to sue President Mohamed Morsi and other government leaders for their ‘lack of response’ to Gohary’s threats.

The country has already suffered a decrease in tourism – last year sombre pictures showed rows of empty seats at the Light and Sound Show, below the historic pyramids in Cairo.

Only a year earlier the show had been fully-booked every night.

Dozens of tourists cooed as they watched the landmarks change to shades of purple, green, red and blue among others. Vast beams of light were shot into the air by high-tech lasers.

Egypt had been on the verge of its own economic revolution, with booming tourism and impressive developments of apartments, offices and flats around the country.

But this revolution went no further. In its place were the scenes of violence and mass protest in Tahrir Square in February which became known as the ‘Arab Spring’.

Affect: Egypts Coalition to Support Tourism are now worried that his threats will deter tourists from visiting the landmarks – since the Arab Spring tourism has fallen

In Saudi Arabia the ancient Islamic holy landmarks of Mecca and Medina are under threat.

According to media reports, £690million worth of construction work is beginning on the Masjid an-Nabawi in Madinah, where the Prophet Mohammed is buried.

Under the proposed plans the site will be developed to include a mosque with a capacity for 1.6 million worshippers.

The house of one of Mohammed’s wives has already been destroyed to make space for public toilets.

The city of Medina, Islam’s second holiest place is under threat as there is now a plan to pull down three 7th-century mosques.

The Washington-based Gulf Institute estimates that 95 per cent of Mecca’s millennium-old buildings have been demolished in the past two decades alone.

The Arab Spring has spawned a new generation of British-born terrorists after al-Qaeda lured dozens of would-be bombers abroad to train for possible attacks on the UK, the head of MI5 warned.

Jonathan Evans said the terror network has taken advantage of the unstable region, in the wake of last year’s revolutions, to spread its influence and create new bases for attacks.

British would-be jihadis are known to be receiving training in the likes of Libya and Egypt, mirroring what has already happened in the Yemen and Somalia.

And they could return to attack the UK in what is a “new and worrying development”, he said.

Mr Evans, the Director General of MI5, warned of the emerging threats in a rare speech, his first in almost two years.

In his talk, he:

“Revealed that the intelligence services and police are preparing for a potential threat from extremists and even lone wolf terrorists should the Eurozone collapse.”

“Warned State-sponsored and criminal cyber attacks risked “real world damage” including one British company which has suffered estimated losses of £800m ($1.2 billion) after being hacked.”

“Suggested a potential return to State-sponsored terrorism by Iran.”

“Said it would be “extraordinary and self-defeating” if the Government’s proposed new email and phone snooping powers did not go ahead.”

“Popular revolts across Arab nations were last year welcomed around the world and resulted in, among others, the end of Hosni Mubarak’s reign in Egypt and Muammar Gaddafi regime in Libya.”

Nick Clegg, the deputy prime minister, described events at the time as “incredibly exciting”.

But in the inaugural Lord Mayor’s Annual Defense and Security Lecture in London on the 24th, Mr Evans warned a new terror threat has emerged from an “Arab world in radical transition”.

He said while the events offered long term hope there was a “more immediate problem” as al-Qaeda has returned to its native home.

“Today parts of the Arab world have once more become a permissive environment for al-Qaeda.

“This is the completion of a cycle – al-Qaeda first moved to Afghanistan in the 1990s due to pressure in their Arab countries of origin. They moved on to Pakistan after the fall of the Taliban.”

“And now some are heading home to the Arab world again. And a small number of British would be jihadis are also making their way to Arab countries to seek training and opportunities for militant activity, as they do in Somalia and Yemen.

“Some will return to the UK and pose a threat here. This is a new and worrying development and could get worse as events unfold.”

The U.S. government is trying to lift a travel ban on a number of American citizens who were forbidden from leaving Egypt earlier this week, reports Daniel Tovrov: of the International Business Times (IBT).

At least 10 Americans and Europeans, including the son of U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray Lahood, working with non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) in Egypt were barred from leaving the country after they tried to board a plane in the capital.

“We are urging the government of Egypt to lift these restrictions immediately and allow folks to come home as soon as possible,” State Department Spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters on Thursday.

Ah, the U.S. State Department. A collection of silver tongued orators that couldn’t talk their way out of a paper bag. Maybe if they “Stongly Urged” the Egyptians, the radicals in charge would free the captives, or hostages.

Yes, I said captives, hostages. They are being held against their will. What would you call them?

This would be funny if it weren’t so sad. It is, however, all too predictable.

In December, security forces of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) raided NGO
offices and confiscated files, computers and cash. They took the cash too?

“Officials in Washington, Berlin and London expressed alarm and dismay that democracy-building organizations would be subject to search and seizure, especially by a regime that receives so much Western military and economic aid,” The National Interest magazine said.

Do these Egg-Heads in Washington, Berlin & London not see the Egyptian leaders are not interested in “democracy building”? That was a rhetorical question. Are they all so insulated from the real world so as to not realize what is transpiring right in front of them? Another rhetorical question. Sorry.

In total, the U.S. sends more aid to Egypt than any other country except Israel. We’ve also equipped them with fighter jets, tanks, helicopters, surveillance aircrafts and anti-aircraft missiles.

So this is what we get for all the billions of dollars we’ve thrown away on the burgeoning “democracy” in Egypt. Harken back to the “Arab Spring”. The glorious freedom movement. Those were the days. Who could have predicted it would unfold this way? Oh, wait. Lots of us predicted just this!

Some of us didn’t. In February, 2011, Charles Krauthammer wrote,
“Who doesn’t love a democratic revolution? Who is not moved by the renunciation of fear and the reclamation of dignity in the streets of Cairo and Alexandria? … “The Egyptian awakening carries promise and hope and of course merits our support.”

Bill Kristol also writes in Feb. 2011, “The United States…has a paramount moral and strategic interest in real democracy in Egypt and freedom for the Egyptian people.”

At the same time they were crafting those sage words, they were deriding skeptics like Glenn Beck, many others, and me who were convinced it would unfold about as it has thus far.

Here is how the grand democratic experiment is taking shape thus far in the land of the Pharohs.

The Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), which represents Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, has won 47 per cent of all seats in the country’s election for the lower house of parliament.

The hard-line Islamist Salafi al-Nour party has won 24 per cent of all seats.

The FJP has named Saad al-Katatni, a leading Muslim Brotherhood official, as speaker of the assembly.

Radical fundamentalists will now occupy a total of 71% of Parliament seats. Oh good.

Ten seats were reserved for appointees of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), the military council that has been ruling Egypt since Mubarak fell.

“This parliament, that has its opening session on Monday, has very limited powers,” reported Al Jazeera’s Sherine Tadros from Cairo, the Egyptian capital.
“The most important thing that it will be doing in the coming weeks and months is setting up a 100-member body that will then write the constitution.”